The New York Mets upped the ante Monday night in their bid to keep National League Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey in the fold.

They made a new extension offer that would add two years and $20 miilion to the $5 million Dickey is scheduled to earn next season, according to sources. The previous offer was said to be a two-year extension worth $16 million.

The new terms were first reported by Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.

The report also said the Mets could still consider trading Dickey, perhaps to the Texas Rangers — with whom the Mets had talked earlier.

Dickey is said to be seeking $31 million total over three years in an extension, according to reports.

The Mets' current offer — three years, $25 million, including this season — is the exact deal the Kansas City Royals gave free-agent right-hander Jeremy Guthrie. And Guthrie, obviously, did not win a Cy Young.

The Baltimore Orioles should have traded right-hander Jeremy Guthrie at the non-waiver deadline last season, or even before. His value was higher when he was further away from free agency, under greater club control.

Instead, the Orioles made a deal that is all too typical of them. They waited too long to move Guthrie and received too little in return. They need prospects, genuine prospects, and they did not get one in the deal that they completed with the Colorado Rockies on Monday.

Guthrie for right-handed starter Jason Hammel and reliever Matt Lindstrom makes sense in a vacuum. The combined salaries of Hammel and Lindstrom in 2012 will be in the range of Guthrie’s. And the Orioles will trumpet that they acquired a combined four years of control for one.

Problem is, Hammel, 29, and Lindstrom, 31, will not be part of the Orioles’ next contending team. They likely will not even help the Orioles advance toward contention. They are mediocre veterans — Lindstrom may be a little better than that — while Guthrie, 32, is a pitcher who had actual value.

The word “had” is applicable not because of Guthrie’s performance — he pitched gallantly as a No. 1 starter in the American League East, averaging nearly 200 innings and compiling an ERA-plus of 106 during the past five seasons. But the formula for trades is always the same: The higher a player’s salary, the closer he is to free agency, the less a team gets in return.

New Orioles general manager Dan Duquette inherited the situation. His predecessor, Andy MacPhail, was the executive who steadfastly held on to Guthrie. Perhaps Duquette could have made a better deal earlier in the off-eason, involving a greater number of suitors. But, heck, the Orioles didn’t hire Duquette until Nov. 6.

So, welcome to another episode of, “As the Orioles churn.”

Hammel, who has a career ERA-plus of 92, will fit somewhere in the O's rotation, but don’t expect anything close to Guthrie. Lindstrom has been traded three straight offseasons, acquiring the reputation of a reliever who is not entirely trustworthy.

Guthrie, on the other hand, will be the Rockies’ No. 1 starter. That enables the Rockies to ask less of their 25-and-under rotation candidates: right-handers Jhoulys Chacin, Juan Nicasio and Alex White; lefty Drew Pomeranz; etc.

The Rockies believe Guthrie will benefit from pitching for a better club and benefit from joining an organization that doesn’t change pitching coaches seemingly every year. Their bullpen, bolstered by the additions of several youngsters in offseason trades, should be deep enough to withstand the loss of Lindstrom.

And guess what?

If the Rockies fail to contend, they can flip Guthrie at the deadline. The Toronto Blue Jays would be one team with interest, sources said. The Jays might not contend, either, but could acquire Guthrie with the idea of signing him long term.

Guthrie might be the best starting pitcher available in July. His value would spike even though he would be only two months from free agency. And here’s the final dagger from the Orioles’ perspective:

The Rockies probably could make a better deal for him than the O’s just did.

Rockies closer Huston Street isn’t a free agent. But don’t be surprised if he changes teams this off-season.

The Orioles and Blue Jays are among the teams that have expressed trade interest in Street, major-league sources say.

The Mets discussed trading right-hander Mike Pelfrey for Street, but backed off, according to the New York Post.

Street, 27, is owed at least $8 million - $7.5 million next season plus a $500,00 buyout on a $9 million club option for 2013.

The free-agent market, meanwhile, is deep in closers – one of whom, Denver-area native Brad Lidge, would appeal to the Rockies if they traded Street.

The Orioles’ interest in Street stems from two factors – their desire to move right-hander Jim Johnson to the rotation and reluctance to keep righty Kevin Gregg as their closer.

The Rockies have shown past interest in right-hander Jeremy Guthrie, who will get a raise from his 2011 salary of $5.75 million in his final year of arbitration. For the Orioles to move Guthrie, they likely would need to obtain another starter in the trade or find one somewhere else.

Street had mixed results last season, finishing with the highest ERA and WHIP of his career. However, he also produced his best strikeout-to-walk ratio and converted 29 of 33 saves.

The St. Louis Cardinals have joined the Detroit Tigers among the clubs interested in Baltimore right-hander Jeremy Guthrie, major-league sources told FOXSports.com.

The extent of conversations between the Cardinals and Orioles is unknown, but St. Louis would like to add an established starter so Kyle McClellan can move back to the bullpen, where he has had more success.

Guthrie is 4-13 with a 4.35 ERA in 22 games this season. In some respects, he could be similar to Kyle Lohse – a longtime American Leaguer who didn’t become a consistent winner until moving to the National League and working with Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan.

Add another name to the Tigers’ list of potential pitching acquisitions: Baltimore right-hander Jeremy Guthrie.

The Tigers have interest in Guthrie, sources say, but he’s behind the likes of Ubaldo Jimenez and Hiroki Kuroda on their wish list.

Orioles general manager Andy MacPhail may hesitate to move Guthrie, because he leads the beleaguered Baltimore staff in innings pitched. Guthrie is just 3-13 with a 4.45 ERA, but he offers stability at a time when highly-touted prospects Brian Matusz, Zach Britton, and Chris Tillman have fallen back into the minor leagues.

Guthrie is earning $5.75 million this season. The 32-year-old is due for a raise in salary arbitration in 2012, after which he will become a free agent.

If the Orioles move Guthrie, they will seek to acquire pitching, either for Guthrie directly or in another deal. Baltimore had a major-league scout in Toledo, Ohio, at a game between the Class AAA affiliates of the Tigers and Yankees on Sunday. Three of Detroit’s top left-handed pitching prospects appeared in the game: starter Andrew Oliver and relievers Charlie Furbush and Matt Hoffman.

Furbush is a candidate to start for the Tigers against Oakland on Wednesday, which made the timing of the relief outing rather curious. Toledo manager Phil Nevin said Furbush appeared in the game because of instructions from the Tigers’ front office.

The Toledo roster also includes Ryan Strieby, an intriguing power-hitting first baseman who is blocked in Detroit by All-Star Miguel Cabrera.